UPDATE tell me the truth - are we losers

[lmh2402]

UPDATE: i'm feeling pretty proud of myself! i installed the frontier late last week. i was a little nervous b/c it didn't seem as super, super tight as possible. but i called the woman/friend we were scheduled to meet with and she gave me the tip to recline the seat and then push and pull so so hard. and THEN push seatback back up and see if it was tighter.

so, met her today for the check and she said i did a great job!! :cheerleader1:

i was so psyched.

however, i totally screwed up the blvd. i knew i had b/c when we uninstalled it i took it totally apart b/c it desperately needed cleaning. rethreading everything was really tricky. but she helped us fix it lickety split and walked us through the installation w/ latch on the side of the car, and then we installed "permanently" for now in the center with the belt.

anyway, i'm very pleased and thanks so much for the encouragement!

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so we've got our new car. and our new car seat. and we've hired someone to reinstall our current seat ("old" blvd) FF (it's currently RF). and to install the new seat (Frontier).

the truth is, i've never installed a seat on my own. i'm totally petrified that we won't do it quite right. the one time we tried was after DS threw up all over the place and i had to take the seat out and take it apart to wash.

i then put it back together...so i thought. and reinstalled. and just for kicks, brought it to my friend to check out.

good thing i had b/c i totally had messed some stuff up when trying to put the seat back together.

so...i'm assuming most of you install your own seats? how do you know you're doing it right? i mean...lots of people install their own seats...right? i don't know why i can't get past this fear...DH is no help. he says "better safe than sorry." i think in truth he's scared we'll do it wrong too.

[legaleagle]

It is scary to think you're doing it wrong, but a good tech should be teaching you how to install the seat yourselves. Since you're hiring someone, make sure they're getting you comfortable with the whole process.

At the beginning, I would also watch the youtube videos a few times to really get a feel for it, and just practice a couple times. Now that I'm more into car seats and know what I'm looking for with a good install, I see it more as a fun challenge to try new seats in new cars. Though some seat/car combos are definitely not fun!

[arivecchi]

If you have Britax seats, the you tube videos posted by the company are hugely helpful IMO. I read the manual and post pics and questions here if I have concerns. At this point, I have installed so many that I always know if I have a good install or not. You should learn how to do it. It's really not as initimidating as it looks - especially britax car seats. They are very easy to install!

I would suggest:

1) read manual
2) watch video
3) install
4) check install at base to make sure car seat does not move more than an inch
5) install tether
6) post pics of your install here
7) if you wish, take your car seat to a car seat check so they can confirm that you know how to install it

[BabbyO]

I install our seats. DH does occasionally, but he always has me check them. Originally, I installed then had tech's check my install. After the first few times with each seat I felt comfortable enough to do it on my own with out having it checked by a tech.

I still had a tech check my install when I re-installed the infant carrier before DS2 was born. it had been 2 years and was in a different position in the car.

I guess I felt pretty confident when the last 3 times I've had the installs checked the tech was impressed by the install, level of knowledge, and types of questions I was asking. But I also ask lots of questions both here and car-seat.org.

[SnuggleBuggles]

I'm real cheap so I'd never pay for that. :) But, dh also happens to be really good at installing the seats. Me? Not so much. Like you, I am intimidated by it. One time I *had* to do it though and wished I was more experienced!! I was stuck at the car repair shop and repairs were going to take many more hours- I had to leave and get ds1 from school! They brought me a rental car and I had very little time to install. I think the person you pay should teach you and make you master it. That is something I'd consider paying for.

Beth

[wellyes]

I am under the impression that the only real difference between Britax and less expensive seats is ease of install- no real point in paying that premium if you aren't the one doing the work!

It is worth learning how. I was always scared to install mine, but then I *had* to: out of town, husband not there, visiting my parents. Police who installed the seat they bought did it absolutely completely wrong. Then I had to do it, in an airport parking lot, in the dark and cold. I was tired, kids were acting up, it was awful. I'm glad I figured it out, it's come in handy a coupe of times isnce then. Always better to be empowered by knowledge when you can.

[lmh2402]

yes, you guys are right. i really do need to learn to do it

i think i'm going to try and install myself. and then see what the person we've hired says about the install.

i'm looking at some of the youtube videos now. can it really be as *easy* as clipping on the latch attachments and pulling the strap tight? and then attaching the tether? something seems wrong. i have not yet opened the box - need to do that and read the manual. baby steps

do you guys install via latch or seatbelt? and why?

[edurnemk]

can it really be as *easy* as clipping on the latch attachments and pulling the strap tight? and then attaching the tether? something seems wrong. i have not yet opened the box - need to do that and read the manual. baby steps

do you guys install via latch or seatbelt? and why?

Yes it can! As long as you can't move it more than an inch from side to side, it's fine. I actually climb on the seat, facing the backrest, when I tighten the straps, so I can get it really tight.

I used to have our Blvd installed with LATCH in the center position of our Ford Escape, because: A) LATCH is easier to do, especially Britax LATCH, B) I install in the center position whenever possible and C) Both Ford and Britax allow a borrowed LATCH.
Now we have a Nissan Rogue and I can't use LATCH in the center, so I used the seat belt. Once DC2 arrives I think we'll have to use both outboard positions (I doubt the BLVD and infant seat will fit side by side) and go back to LATCH. In my mom's car I used seatbelt in the outboard position because I felt I got a sturdier install that way.

We live abroad now and there's not techs here, so I HAVE to do it on my own and there's no one to verify if I did it right, plus we travel a lot so I've gotten plenty of practice installing car seats in taxis, planes and rental cars. But I have seen how MANY friends have incorrectly installed seats or are strapping the baby in incorrectly. There is a lot of room for error, but if you watch the videos and read the manual you should be OK.

Last year we were in a car accident and DS was the only passenger without injuries, so I guess the seat was correctly installed. That's my verification, :rotflmao:

[legaleagle]

Yes, it really can be that easy, esp with a britax. And once you've done it a few times, it's not scary. I generally use LATCH since my kids are under 40 lbs and I'm installing in the mazda5 captain's chairs. My husband's car is a 2006 sentra and has weird seatbelts or something because I can only get LATCH installs to work, though I haven't tried that hard with the seatbelts (nor have I tried that many different seats) because I haven't needed to.

[BabbyO]

I almost always use a seatbelt install, but that is just because *I* can get a tighter install that way. For some reason I have difficulty tightening the latch straps. Maybe it has something to do with the cars we have and the angle of the seats...

FWIW...I think the seatbelt installs are as easy as Latch.

[AnnieW625]

I was a car seat loser for a long time because I thought I was doing things right and I wasn't. I drove around with DD1 in her Britax Marathon ffing at 12 mos. and using LATCH in the center, which you aren't suppose to do, but our car manual didn't say anything about that. Thanks to Jools I now know that is a no no. I wish there were more techs in my area or that training classes were readily available because I know for sure that DH and I could both use the training.

I have learned so much from this board including recently how to get a seat tighter with latch than with the seat belt. Still hate where the latch connectors are in my Pilot (the leather makes them hard to get at), but at least I can say I have done it, and my seats are as tight as can be now:).

[lmh2402]

bump for update in OP

[Joolsplus2]

:yay::thumbsup: